Vogue Italia Editor in Chief Franca Sozzani passes away

Vogue Italia Editor in Chief Franca Sozzani has passed away at the age of 66, just weeks after coming to London to receive an honorary award at the Fashion Awards.

Sozzani had been ill for a year, it is understood, and was honoured earlier this month at the Fashion Awards, organised by the British Fashion Council, where she received the Swarovski Award for Positive Change. She had also just completed filming an acclaimed documentary of her life which was directed by her son Francesco Carrozzini.

Sozzani had headed up Vogue Italia for 28 years (she was appointed at the same time as Anna Wintour took over at Vogue US) and made it a global must-read due to its powerful and creative imagery. She was a key early supporter of the early careers of photographers such as Mario Testino, Paolo Roversi, Herb Ritts, Peter Lindbergh, Bruce Weber, and Steven Meisel, who valued the creative freedom afforded to them.

Anna Wintour had travelled with Sozzani to the Fashion Awards and revealed she had been on oxygen prior to taking to the stage. "[...] she willed herself onstage, giving the most charming and humble speech and thanking the English for opening the door to her creative spirit when she lived there as a young woman. Personally, I feel that door was always ajar," Wintour said on the Vogue US website.

Following the Fashion Awards on 8 December, Sozzani travelled to Paris to attend Karl Lagerfeld's Chanel Métiers d’Art show at the Ritz.

As well as her tireless support of fashion and creative talent, Sozzani was known for her dedication to philanthropy and and held the role of Global Ambassador Against Hunger for the United Nations World Food Programme. She also worked with Convivio in the fight to eradicate AIDS and the European Institute of Oncology towards prevention and diagnosis of oncological diseases.

At the time of Sozzani receiving her Fashion Award, British Fashion Council chair Dame Natalie Massenet said: “Words cannot express the huge deal of admiration and respect I have for Franca and her work. She exemplifies those qualities this award has been created to honour, and her tireless commitment to the causes she cares so passionately about is a great example to us all. The positive impact she has had on the fashion and global communities will be felt for generations to come.”